Later in the day, in a signal of how the tax issue is roiling the GOP campaign, the Romney camp tried to step back from the aide's remarks, underscoring that the former Massachusetts governor didn't want to raise anyone's taxes.

The city's public advocate on Friday accused Mayor Michael Bloomberg of "lying" and demanded he apologize to New Yorkers, turning up the heat on the mayor for his decision not to disclose the domestic-violence arrest that led to a top aide's resignation from City Hall.